NEED party urges Museveni to digest EFRIS system once

By Charles Katabalwa

6^th May 2024

As traders are set to meet President Museveni on Tuesday at the Kololo grounds to discuss issues affecting them, the National Economic Empowerment Dialogue (NEED) party has appealed to the President to deeply analyze these issues and come up with lasting solutions to enable the traders to execute their work smoothly.

The call was made by the NEED Party Spokesperson Moses Matovu during their weekly press conference at Lubaga, Kampala saying among the issues affecting traders is the EFRIS system, high taxation, vending of products by the so called investors among others.

He adds that investors should not distort the distribution chain by opening shops and vending products which he says calls for enactment of a law that bars them from involving in these activities.

Meanwhile, Matovu lashed out at URA over the use of excessive force while collecting taxes which he says affects traders psychologically, financially and physically.

Over the past two weeks, traders in Kampala and upcountry areas have staged protests against the implementation of EFRIS policy, demanding a meeting with President Museveni to address their grievances.

Despite efforts by the state minister for Kampala, Kabuye Kyofatogabye, to persuade traders to end their boycott and engage in dialogue with the government, the traders remain steadfast in their insistence on meeting with President Museveni before resuming business operations.

EFRIS is a system introduced by Uganda Revenue Authority to ramp up efficiency in domestic tax collections.

The system monitors transactions in real time and is designed to enforce tax compliance in such a way that the trader or goods and service seller not only gets the tax from the buyer but also remits it to the tax collector.

Some traders have misunderstood EFRIS, calling it a “new tax”, while others understand it but also see it as a system that will make it difficult to evade taxes.